Dwelling on Southeastern Conference losses is not a habit LSU basketball wants to develop.

Coach Matt McMahon was disappointed by the three-point road loss to Texas A&M but felt encouraged by the competitive spirit LSU (12-2, 0-1 SEC) displayed, especially with the absence of injured star point guard Dedan Thomas.

Finding a way to win is the team’s primary focus as it prepares to play South Carolina (9-5, 0-1) at 6 p.m. on Tuesday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The Gamecocks are the lowest-rated SEC team on KenPom, sitting 88th in the country. LSU is ninth in the conference and 37th overall.

Thomas is day-to-day with a foot injury and was seen wearing a boot on his left foot on the bench. Thomas’ health status will have an official update at 7 p.m. on Monday.

With or without the junior, LSU has to focus on three areas to prevent an 0-2 start in SEC play.

Rebounding

McMahon spotlighted one aspect of the Texas A&M game he wasn’t pleased with.

“The one disappointing stat to me,” the fourth-year coach said in the post-game press conference, “(was) the offensive rebounding. You know, we knew coming in, in A&M five power five games to date, they’ve averaged 15 (offensive) boards a game, and we wanted to limit that. They got 15 again today. I thought it was a big difference in the game.”

LSU lost the rebounding battle by eight, which was the exact differential on the offensive glass.

The Tigers played notably hard on defense, but there were several moments when players were out of position for long rebounds after missed 3-pointers. Other times, they were outmuscled. LSU cannot afford to give teams extra possessions. The team has preached that it wants to have an identity centered on physicality in the paint. This includes interior scoring and glass cleaning.

South Carolina is averaging seven offensive rebounds in its five high-major games so far.

Offensive execution

LSU’s overhauled roster this season can only be fully actualized with a star facilitator.

Thomas, who leads the SEC with 7.1 assists while averaging 16.2 points per game, is the centerpiece that the team needed for the 2025-26 season. Without him against Texas A&M, LSU had an uptick in stalled possessions and a season-high 16 turnovers against constant full-court pressure.

If LSU wants to beat South Carolina, it has to manufacture more easy shots. If it doesn’t have the dribble penetration of Thomas for a second consecutive game, LSU will need someone else to carry that load.

Jalen Reece is the replacement at point guard who will have to create and play limit mistakes. The freshman finished with four points, a career-high seven assists and three turnovers in 36 minutes last game. The most playing time he had previously was 23 minutes against Prairie View.

McMahon appreciated the valiant effort of Reece in his first career start. However, avoiding late-game turnovers will be paramount if the contest against South Carolina is close.

Third scorer

Mike Nwoko, a hyper-efficient center, and Max Mackinnon, a dead-eye 3-point shooter, combined for 41 of LSU’s 72 points.

While they excelled, LSU didn’t get enough from fifth-year senior Marquel Sutton, who is averaging 13.4 points and 9.3 rebounds.

The Omaha transfer had three points on 0-of-4 shooting and five rebounds in 29 minutes. While his three steals and one block were positives, LSU needed production in scoring and defensive rebounding.

McMahon said Sutton will learn from this experience against a heavy-pressure defense and will be called on for a stronger performance again versus South Carolina.

“Marquel has done an incredible job making this transition from a post player to the wing, but that’s the first time in his life he’s ever faced something like that,” McMahon said on the LSU sports radio network. “I thought it disrupted his rhythm a little bit, but he’ll learn from it and get better. It’s going to be a big part of winning on Tuesday.”